Witchcraft
by TwilightFan2694
Summary: Bella is accused of witchcraft by the King. Edward, the King's cousin, is supposed to come and witness Bella's death and show his support. But what will happen when Edward see's her innocence? Will he risk all to save her, or will he suffer in silence?
1. Chapter 1

**AN: So, this is my new story, and I hope you guys like it. Please, if you haven't already, feel free to read my other stories. Thank you, and please enjoy the story.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or any of the characters.**

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Edward's POV

I hated when father made me go visit the King, Michael Newton. King Mike was such a vile man, I couldn't stand him. I absolutely hated him, but I understood why my father, Carlisle, always made me go to the King's court. I had to show our family's support of King Mike. Father wouldn't force me to go at all if Mike wasn't my cousin. Yes, that is why I, Edward Cullen, son of Lord Carlisle Cullen, was forcing myself to visit the King and pretend that I supported him.

I still had about a day's ride on horseback to get to court. Mike claimed that he had something he needed to do, and for that he needed our support. All he would say in his message was that it involved a wealthy family in court, and a girl. Just great! He probably wanted our support in marrying the poor girl.

My horse, Aravene, sensed my bitterness and turned her head to look at me. I was pretending not to notice her questioning glance. I refused to get into yet another fight with my horse. I swear she was worse than my mother or either of my sisters.

She noticed that I was ignoring her, so she slowed to a stop. I sighed. She wasn't going to let me stew in my bitterness for long, was she? Aravene was a good horse, but she could be stubborn, and she liked to think that it was her job to look out for me. Maybe that is why we get along so well.

"What do you want me to say Ari? I don't want to go to Mike's court and play nice again," I said exasperatedly. She rolled her eyes. "I know, I know. You don't want to go any more than I do." She shook her head at me. "No Ari, there isn't anything else bothering me. Can you please just drop it?" I pleaded. She gave me a long calculating look before she turned her head back to the road and continued on. "Thank you," I said. She bobbed her head once and turned her full focus onto the journey.

It wasn't long before I was back to wondering why Mike wanted either me or Carlisle to come see him. He knew we didn't really support him, we only put on a show.

Honestly, Carlisle should have been king. His sister had been the princess of the court, she was a few years older than him. When my grandfather and grandmother died, Carlisle was supposed to gain the throne, but his sister had always been the ambitious one. She insisted that she should get the throne for being the oldest. Society told her that she had to marry first, so she grabbed the first nobleman she saw and married him. That was George Newton, and the marriage was 25 years ago. Newton was a power hungry man, so once Tanya married him, he became the real ruler.

Tanya had Mike about a year later. Things were fine in court until about 6 years ago, when Mike Newton had both of his parents murdered on his 18th birthday. He had been a horrible child, and he was obsessed with power. He wanted what he wanted, and if he couldn't have it, than no one could. I was still bitter about it because despite her faults, Aunt Tanya had been a good person. She was never cruel to anyone. She was just power hungry.

I was one year younger than Mike, but I often felt like I was the older man. Mike was so whiny and pathetic. He was repulsive in his behaviors and he was not a good ruler. He imposed high taxes and unfair laws.

I pitied the poor girl that was involved in whatever Mike wanted. Whether he wanted to marry her, or make her work in the kitchens as a slave, she was unfortunate.

My thoughts kept my mind busy for hours. Before I knew it, the sun had begun to sink below the horizon and Ari was looking for a place for us to camp for the night.

She stopped in a secluded area, plenty of trees, but not so many as to prevent sunlight from shining through. I grinned. This place made the perfect camp.

I dismounted and removed my pack from Ari's back. She trotted off to the edge of the clearing and began grazing on the grass growing over there. I guess she didn't need me to groom her or anything, but I suppose she knew we would be arriving tomorrow and that the stable boys would take good care of her.

I set about building a small fire. It took me a few minutes, but I eventually got one started. As soon as the flames had grown strong enough, I pulled out some of the meat I had packed for the journey and began cooking it over the flames. I was quite hungry, so I was rather impatient. I growled because the food was taking way too long to cook.

Eventually I got to eat my meal and relax for a bit. I was dreading tomorrow. Stupid Mike for making me come all the way out here for whatever reason when my little sister was worried about being called a witch. We had recently learned that she often had visions of the future, and if anyone found out, they could have her burned at the stake. Father decided to stay with her and make sure she would be okay. My family was trying to figure out what to do right now to help her situation.

Since someone had to go support Mike, I was sent. I think father also sent me because of all my family members, I was the best judge of character. I could often hear what someone was saying, and know what they really thought by their facial expressions. I saw the little things like a slight crease to the brow, or a tiny fidget. Maybe even a small eye twitch. Yeah, my father wanted me to identify the exact reason Mike wanted our support. No doubt the excuse he gave me would be a lie.

I fell asleep in my ponderings, but my dreams were not peaceful.

"_HELP ME!" a voice was crying. I turned in the direction of the voice, only to see Mike glaring down at a beautiful young woman. She had a pale heart-shaped face, long mahogany colored hair, and deep brown eyes that were currently full of fear. She was absolutely beautiful. She shifted slightly and I glanced at her face again. A closer look showed that her eyes showed disgust and defiance toward Mike, behind the fear._

_I ran toward them. I knew I wasn't supposed to, but I had to help this girl. Mike would surely have my head for this, but I really didn't care at this point. "What are you going to do to me?" the girl was asking._

"_Well, you are clearly too strong willed, pretty girl. I believe you need to be taught your proper place as a woman," Mike stated with a smirk. He was advancing toward the girl now, and she seemed to lose all of her fight. I wanted to tell her not to lose hope yet because I was going to help her, but I felt a pull in the opposite direction…_

I sat bolt upright from where I had been sleeping. Sweat was running down my face and I was breathing heavily. That dream had been awful and very realistic. It was almost as if this dream was a warning, a symbol of what I would face once I got to the palace.

I sighed and packed my bag for the rest of my journey. Aravene was watching me warily, she must have been worried about me. We had a few hours left to our journey. I reluctantly climbed onto her back, and we road off again toward the palace.

It seemed like we arrived at the palace in no time at all. We rode through the gates without being stopped and I dismounted, handing Ari's reins over to a nearby stable hand. I flipped the boy a gold coin, which caused him to look up at me with wide eyes. Normal payment for caring for horses was a copper coin, not nearly as good as a gold coin. He smiled at me and nodded his thanks, bringing Ari over to the stables.

I sighed and continued to walk into the palace. The guards stopped me at the door to the Audience Hall, where Mike would be waiting to talk to me.

"Your name and business here sir?" one guard asked.

"Edward Cullen, cousin to the King, son of Lord Carlisle Cullen, here upon summons by the King himself. If you don't believe me, just ask him if he was expecting me," I replied to him as he looked at me skeptically.

"One moment," He said. The other guard kept me out of the room as the other guard went to alert King Mike to my presence.

He returned in a few moments with a surly look on his face. He had clearly been hoping for a fight. It must have been boring standing guard outside of a door all day. However, I felt that he had done his job well. "What's your name sir?" I asked him. "You seem to be very good at your job. I commend you on it."

"My name's Felix, my Lord. Thank you for the compliment, but I was just ensuring my King's safety." He grinned at me as I walked in. I knew we would get along just fine. Felix was a good man.

I walked into the room and bowed before King Mike, although I was trying my hardest not to grit my teeth or to grimace. "My King. You summoned me to court on an urgent matter?" I asked.

"Ah Edward, I see Carlisle sent you and could not come himself. All the same, yes the matter is very important. Oh yes, I forgot, you may rise." He smirked at me. He knew that of all the Cullens, I was the one who hated him the most. The feeling was mutual.

I frowned slightly as I stood up. He hadn't "forgotten" as he put it. He had purposefully made me bow longer than usual, to make me look subservient. The behavior was rude, and my frown was to let him know that I had caught his slight.

"So, your majesty," I began all the while trying to hide my disdain from my words, "what may I ask was of such importance?"

"Well, as you know it has to do with a girl. She is the sheriff's daughter. She and her family have been staying at court recently. However, there is something I must do about this girl…" he began. "I'll tell you the rest later. I expect you would like to freshen up a bit," he said. I bowed again before striding out of the room, frowning.

So, if I had my facts straight, Mike had sent an urgent message summoning me or my father to court, I had hurried up here when my family needed me so as to keep the King's interest off my family, he had simply told me it had to do with a girl living at court, and then he refused to get to the heart of the matter? I think he was putting off telling me what it was he wanted for now. However, I was determined to find out. Especially after the dream I had had last night.

Bella's POV

I sat on the floor of the dungeon crying again. I had been locked here for about a month now under false pretenses. My father and my brothers were torn up over it. My mother, Renee, had died shortly after I was born. She had been in the King's dungeon when it happened. She had been charged with helping a criminal, even though the man she was feeding and taking care of in the cell she visited was her father and he was innocent. That was about 21 years ago. My older brothers, Emmett and Jasper, didn't know what to do about my situation. My father, Charlie, couldn't do anything because he was supposed to be the sheriff, which meant he had to abide by the King's laws.

Life hadn't been too bad for my family. We had lived in a mansion on the outskirts of a village named Forks. Recently, my father had been offered a promotion, to work as the sheriff in the King's city. We had moved here shortly after father received the offer. Our old home was given to the Black family to maintain. They had been old family friends for as long as I can remember, and they really appreciated us giving them the house.

Things had gone downhill as soon as we reached the palace and father introduced us to the King. I remember it well.

_Jasper, Emmett, and I trailed in behind father. As we approached the King, all of us bowed. He motioned for us to rise and we did. He welcomed father, but his gaze remained locked on me for whatever reason. I looked at him. He was blond haired and blue eyed, with a babyish face. He wasn't ugly, but he kind of scared me. His eyes were not warm and inviting, they were hard and cold. _

_He was still staring at me and I was starting to feel uncomfortable. "Sheriff, would you kindly introduce me to these lovely children of yours?" he asked with what was supposed to be a kind voice. His voice just made a shiver of fear run down my spine. Why was he staring at me? I was a freak among girls. I loved to read, I was strong willed, I tried to be an equal to my brothers, and I could go on and on. I wasn't even pretty. I had brown hair, brown eyes, and I was an average height. Nope, nothing special about me._

"_Of course my liege. These are my sons, Jasper and Emmett. Jasper is the blond one, and Emmett is the giant bear with curly brown hair." Charlie said, pointing to them. "And this is my daughter, Isabella." He pointed to me. _

"_Pleasure to meet you all," Mike said, still staring at me. He had an evil glint in his eyes. I gulped a bit and then held my head up higher. I would not let him intimidate me. I was a strong independent woman. He wouldn't bring me down. _

_Later on that night, my father and brothers had all gone turned in for the night, but I was up reading a book in our new home. A knock at the door caused me to jump in alarm. I stood up and walked over to the door to see who was there. _

"_Ms. Swan?" a man asked. _

"_Yes, that's me," I answered. _

"_Well, Ms. Swan, the King summons you to come to court immediately." _

_I grimaced and followed the man out after writing a note for my father, letting him know where I was going. _

_We arrived at the Palace in no time. I think it felt like it took less time than it had because I was dreading going inside to talk to the King. I didn't know why, but King Mike gave me the creeps. _

"_Ah, if it isn't the lovely Isabella Swan! What brings you here so late at night?" Mike asked. I didn't bother to tell him I preferred to be called Bella. I didn't want him to sully my name any more than he already had. _

"_You summoned me, my King," I replied with a bow. _

_He raised one eyebrow. "Ah, so I did. I'm so sorry I had forgotten my dear. Why don't you come into my sitting room and we can talk?" he asked, although I'm pretty sure that saying no was out of the question. _

_I nodded and followed him into his quarters. Even the sitting room was giving me the creeps. He had animal heads along the walls and weapons standing in the corner. There was nothing nice about this room at all, and I'm sure there was nothing nice about Mike either. _

"_Umm, you have a lovely place," I lied. It would not do to insult the King. _

"_Why thank you Isabella. I had hoped you would like it. You know, I really think you are quite beautiful." _

_I did my best to hide my look of disgust. I wasn't beautiful, and I did not want him to call me beautiful. It made me feel disgusting. "Thank you," I managed to say._

"_Yes, you are very beautiful. What would you say to being my Queen?" he asked. _

_That was it. I couldn't hide my true feelings any more. A look of pure disgust and hatred crossed my face. He noticed, but chose to ignore it. _

"_You know, refusing me would be very unwise. I can make your life very unpleasant," he threatened. _

"_You can't! My father won't allow it!" I yelled. _

_He laughed. The creep had the nerve to laugh at me. "My dear Isabella, you speak of things that are beyond your comprehension. Your father works for me, and if he were to do anything about it, he would be ruined." _

_I very nearly cried. He was right. My father could not help me, nor could my brothers. "I won't do it. Do what you will to me!" I cried. He would not get the best of me. I would not show my weakness._

"_Very well, Isabella. You may go!" he growled. He was furious at my refusal, and I knew my life would never be the same._

_I walked out of the room with my head held high, refusing to show my fear. As soon as I was out if the palace I hurried home to talk with my father and brothers._

"_Oh Bells, what can we do? I'm so sorry that this is happening to you," Jasper said as calmly as he could. He knew that showing how upset he was would only make this worse for me. _

"_That monster! I swear Bellsy, if he tries to hurt you, I will rip him to shreds!" Emmett exclaimed. I winced at the mental picture._

"_Em, you know you can't do that. I would help if I could, but the King knows that we will be ruined if we try to do anything. We'd be outlaws, all of us!" father replied. Emmett deflated a bit. They all looked so dejected. I didn't even know what the King would do to me, but it wouldn't be good. I knew this was hurting my family. _

"_I'm so sorry guys!" I cried. They all flocked to comfort me and held me while I drifted off into a restless slumber._

_The next morning, I was awoken by guards storming the house. They were the King's men, and were apparently supposed to search my room for anything suspicious. They came out with a sword and my pile of books. One of them sneered at me._

"_Well, well, well, look what we found? These are not things that a woman should own Miss Swan. I think the King will find these objects very interesting," he said. With that, the soldiers walked out, leaving a huge mess in their wake. _

"_It's okay Bella. They can't do anything with those objects," Jasper assured me, although he didn't sound too sure himself. I turned and cried into his shoulder. _

_We all sat around the house, wondering what was going to happen to me. It wasn't long before I found out._

"_Miss Swan, you are summoned to a court hearing by the King!" A runner was yelling outside our door. "You are to report to the Palace for the hearing in one hour's time!" He scampered off as soon as he finished. _

_I sighed and stood up. I should probably be dressed appropriately for a court hearing. I went upstairs and dressed as nicely as I could. I didn't own any really nice clothes as I couldn't stand wearing them. _

_My father and brothers decided to accompany me to the hearing. They refused to wait to find out what the King's curse of action would be. _

_We arrived at the court just in time for the hearing. As I walked in, I noticed all of the people nearby were looking at me with fear in their eyes. I frowned, curious as to why these people suddenly seemed afraid of me. _

_King Mike was sitting on his throne, smirking at me. He seemed to believe his form of revenge was perfect._

"_Isabella Marie Swan," the King announced. "You are here on trial for witchcraft! You are charged with owning objects that no ordinary woman would wish to own and for making me believe I was in love with you!" he finished. I just gaped at him._

"_What do you have to say in your defense?" he asked._

"_I'm not a witch! So what if I own a sword and some books? That doesn't make me a witch!" I cried at him. _

_Everyone in the room looked at me with disapproval. It was only then that I remembered I was addressing the King and that women were not supposed to stand up for themselves. I had pretty much condemned myself for being different. Independence basically made me a witch in these people's eyes._

"_She is not a witch!" my brothers were shouting as they pulled against restraining arms of guards. My father just stood there with unshed tears in his eyes. The only other woman in his family besides me had been my mother. And she had also been arrested, though on different charges. _

"_Your words confirm my thoughts on the matter. You, Isabella, are a witch. You will rot in the dungeon until a few select people are here to witness your death. You will then be burned at the stake, alive!" Mike cried. _

"_NO!" my family yelled. But it was too late, I was being dragged off to the dungeons for who knows how long, and I would die soon._

_I had hoped to find true love in my life, but my hopes were gone as soon as I realized what the rest of my life would be like. _

_The last thing I remember of that day was being thrown into a dark cell and chained to the wall, before I collapsed._

So, here I am. Sitting in the dungeons, still waiting for the end to come. I've been told it will be soon. Someone named Lord Cullen was supposed to arrive to witness my death. He would be arriving any day now, and I would die within the next month.

I only hope that I die quickly and do not have to endure the burning too long. Although, I really do not want this Lord Cullen to witness my death. Something about his name makes me want to live to escape this Palace alive. Irrational, I know. But still…

I snapped out of my thoughts as I heard the door creak open. I groaned. Another day of torture. I entered my happy place, where I saw a pair of emerald green eyes watching me with love and adoration. I also saw the most handsome man I'd ever seen. Although, I had never actually seen this man before. I didn't know why I pictured him. I hardly felt it as the jailer began to give me my daily beating. I remained in my happy place and let it over take me, before I felt myself slip into unconsciousness once again.

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**Please Review and tell me what you think... If you would like to suggest anything you really want to see happen in the future, I would love to hear those thoughts too. =) **


	2. Chapter 2

**AN: Sorry for the long wait between chapters! Thank you all for sticking with me through such a long period of time. Hope you enjoy the chapter!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Twilight or any of the characters...**

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**Chapter 1: First Meeting**

Edward's POV

I walked swiftly to my chambers where I was supposed to be retiring for now and, as I was expected to, take a nap. However, I wasn't in the slightest bit tired from my journey. On the contrary, Mike's refusal to tell me anything now had aroused my curiosity, making me feel quite restless.

I sat down on the huge bed with a groan. I didn't want to be here. I hated this place and what Mike had done to it. Even this room was disgusting with war paintings all over the walls, as if we were a nation at war.

Even my thoughts in this place were grim. I reflected back on my dream and what it might have to do with whatever Mike wasn't telling me. If that were the case, what if this girl had refused him? I didn't know what Mike would do in a situation like this.

I sighed and stood up. I couldn't just sit and wait until Mike summoned me. No, I was going to disguise myself and wander the city- see what the people had to say. Maybe I would be able to glean some information that would shed light on the mysterious issue to which Mike would not tell me.

I pulled on a hooded cloak, to which I planned to use to mask my identity. I then, strode to the door and hurried swiftly out of the palace. The trip out of the palace was uneventful for I merely passed a servant or two in the halls who did not spare me a second glance.

When I finally exited the palace gates, I threw my hood up over my head and walked in the direction of the nearest pub. What better place to hear rumors or some sort of information.

I arrived at the pub, the Winged Horse, after about a quarter mile walk. Of course, a lot of things that I overheard were insignificant trifles such as the farmer on such and such hill had a disagreement with his neighbor over property lines, or the blacksmith down the street was caught in the middle of a nasty argument between his wife and his son regarding some serving maid.

I was about to give up when a couple of interesting fellows walked in. I say interesting because they both looked haggard and worn, sort of like they had just lost something important to them. One of the two men was a huge bulky fellow with curly brown hair, whereas the other was a lanky blond haired man. They walked right past me and ordered a couple of beers, before they headed off into a corner. I managed to overhear the blond haired man say "It'll be alright. We must believe she will find a way out of this situation somehow. She's a smart girl," to the other man. The dark haired fellow just grunted, clearly unconvinced.

So, they were talking about a girl. I wondered if this girl, who was in some sort of predicament, was the girl involved with the King. Well, the most I could do was try.

I followed the two men over to their table. As soon as they sat down, I made my presence known.

"Excuse me sirs, but I was wondering if I could join you? I couldn't help but notice that you looked as if some great misfortune befell you and I was wondering what it could have been, for I have heard nothing of such great importance that would cause such glum countenances." I held my breath. The dark haired man had glared at me throughout my speech, whereas the other man looked at me doubtfully.

"You must be new in town to have not heard, but it would be old news to the rest of us,' the blond haired man said, indicating for me to sit. "What is your name, sir?"

The dark haired man was still glowering at me as I sat. He clearly didn't trust me, which made me believe it wise to hide my true identity. "Anthony Masen," I replied, using my mother's maiden name along with my middle name.

The blond haired man nodded thoughtfully. "A good name. I'm Jasper Swan and this is my older brother Emmett Swan," he said while gesturing toward Emmett.

"Nice to meet you," I replied.

"Sure," Emmett scoffed. "Unless you know some way to save our sister, then you are just wasting your time here."

"Your sister?" I queried.

"Yes, she is in prison right now," Jasper replied. "Let me start at the beginning. A little over a month ago, our father was offered a position as the new sheriff to the gave our old lodgings to a family who had long been our friends, the Blacks. The day we arrived here in town, we were taken to meet the king, who had eyes only for our sister. She seemed unnerved by that man's creepy stare, but she didn't say anything, which shocked us for we had all noticed how he stared at her. Later that night, she left our home, after writing a note of course, saying she had been summoned to see King Mike. When she came home, she was greatly distressed. She said Mike had made advances on her, even asking her to be his queen and that when she turned him down, he was furious and was going to make sure she suffered." He paused and seemed as if he could tell the tale any further.

"That good for nothing snake sent his guards to ransack our home for anything that could be used against Bella!" Emmett growled. He seemed to have become extremely angry at the retelling of his sister's demise. "He had her brought to court and tried as a witch! Our sister may be a little too independent for her own good, but she is not a witch. So what is she likes to read and has practiced swordsmanship? If only she hadn't spoken out against the foul git. Though no doubt he would have found something else to charge her with!" He was positively fuming.

"That's enough, Em," Jasper said. "Do you want to be arrested too? How do you think Bella would handle it?

"Anyway, he said our sister was a witch and she was thrown in prison. We could do nothing for risk of becoming outlawed or father losing his job. We haven't seen her since, but we hear that the King is waiting for some Lord Cullen to arrive to witness her death by burning at the stake!" Jasper seemed miserable and speechless again.

"If I could get my hands on that Lord Cullen then he would wish he had no affiliation with this matter. If only he knew that an innocent girl was going to die, and that he would be a member of the guilty party," Emmett hissed under his breath, positively seething with anger now. I flinched, knowing that the anger was toward me, whether he knew it or not. If he knew who I really was, he probably would have killed me where I sat.

"Well, that's all there is to tell," Jasper said. "What say you about this, Anthony?"

"I fear the King is an unjust man. But how do you know that this Lord Cullen sides with him? Perhaps he knows not of the reason for his summons to court and he may even believe the King is in the wrong?"

Emmett snorted. "When I meet a nobleman related to that devious monster who actually has a heart, I'll eat my hat!"

I frowned. I would never convince them that I, as Lord Cullen, meant well and would do whatever I could to save this Bella, well as much as I could do within the law. I would just have to do my best to delay Mike until I could get my father to help intercede.

"I'm sorry about your sister. I wish the King were a more reasonable fellow," I said honestly.

Emmett's features softened a bit. "Thanks, man. That means a lot. Everyone in town would always ridicule us for our sister's misfortune. You would be the first to seem truly sincere in your compassion for our situation. I'm sorry I was so rude before. You must understand why I would not seem happy about yet another person who might ridicule our poor sister. She is but 22 years of age."

I nodded. We turned to talk of lighter things, to which I found out a lot about Bella's character. Apparently she couldn't stand it when she was talked down to, or when she was excluded from things. I heard about when she was only six years old and insisted that she should get to go on a hunting trip with her brothers. I laughed openly at that. I found myself desperately wanting the chance to get to know Bella Swan.

After a few hours I realized that my absence at the palace would soon be noticed, so I bid my new friends farewell with the promise to meet up again soon for a bottle of beer and a couple of good stories. I hurried back to the palace as fast as I could without drawing attention to myself and arrived just at sundown.

I figured I had about an hour before I was summoned for the evening meal, so I thought I might venture down to the dungeon and meet this Bella Swan for myself.

As I entered the dungeon, I heard a whipping sound and a weak whimpering. I hurried forward to see the dungeon master whipping a girl who looked severely pained and close to passing out.

"Excuse me sir, but I would like to speak to a Miss Bella Swan," I said as cordially as possible, masking my disgust toward this man.

"I'm sorry sir, but the King has ordered no visitors unless they are people of import, and she is in the middle of her daily whipping."

"Well, as she has been down here so long because it took me forever to travel here, I think you could let her off early today and let me speak with her," I said with a slight threat in my voice.

"And who are you to demand such things of me?" the man sneered. "Only relatives to the king or the king himself are allowed down here to see her."

"It may fascinate you to know that I am Lord Edward Cullen, the King's own cousin. Now I demand you leave at once and let me speak with her!" I full out shouted at him. The girl, Bella, looked up at me in shock and with a slight bit of fear. No wonder, since her life was pretty much in my hands right now.

"Yes sir, right away. I'm sorry to have inconvenienced you in any way my Lord!" the jailer stuttered before scampering out of the room.

"Miss Swan?" I asked.

Bella looked up at me with as much defiance as it seemed she could muster. I was shocked for a moment for she was the same girl from my dreams. She was absolutely beautiful.

She gasped when she looked into my eyes, but she covered it up quickly with a glare. However, I was curious as to why my appearance shocked her. It seemed to have been in recognition almost. "What do you want? Come to mock me before watching me die?" she spat.

"No, ma'am. I came to speak to you, for I heard your tale today while down in the pub and cannot but say that you were falsely accused indeed. I wanted you to know that I will do all in my power to sway the king's decision into letting you go free."

She snorted. "Of course you are," she said sarcastically. "No, I think you believe I m stupid enough for you to get away with such lies and that you merely wanted to see what I have been reduced to. No doubt the King told you lies!"

I shook my head. She was as stubborn as her brother, Emmett, had been, but I would not sway her. "Believe what you will, Miss Swan. I will not try to change your mind. But in my defense, my cousin did not tell me why he summoned me, and I do not agree with him in this matter. For this reason, I believe he has avoided telling me any details."

She eyed me skeptically. "If you really mean what you say, then I'm sure I'll find out soon, for the King comes to gloat every day. I wish to see how he reacts to seeing you down here."

I gulped. I'm sure Mike would be none to pleased to see me down here. He would know I had been snooping around and had discovered what he wasn't telling me.

A look of horror crossed my face, before Bella burst out laughing. "Oh, if only you could have seen your face. I guess you must be telling me the truth if you fear him coming down here that much. Not to worry, I was just messing with you to test your reaction."

I scowled. "That was not in the least bit funny," I protested. "You know, if you keep that up, I might never come back to visit!"

She frowned. "You're the only decent company I've had for a month. You wouldn't really deprive me of that, would you?"

I sighed. "No, I wouldn't." I hadn't been serious anyway. There was no way I could have stayed away from her, even if I wanted to. There was just something about her that drew me in.

She nodded, looking relieved. "Thank you for coming to visit me. I've missed being able to tease people."

I laughed. "If that's the case, then tease me as you wish."

Bella's POV

I don't know why, but Edward seemed to have a calming effect on me. After all that I had been through, you would think I would feel uneasy around someone even remotely related to the king, but I wasn't. I laughed and joked with him until he had to leave for the evening meal. If he had stayed longer, it would have made his cousin suspicious.

I learned that Edward hated his cousin as much as anyone could hate someone. What Mike was, Edward was the polar opposite. I must say, I had been shocked to see those same emerald green eyes that soothed me during punishments, but it turned out to be a nice surprise. Edward had even promised to try to find a way to save me from daily punishments. He resolved that at that appointed time he would scare the jailer away again.

Edward told me of his meeting with my brothers earlier this afternoon, but I swore never to mention it to them. He told me how he had to use a different name around them for fear that they would harm him.

I hated the fact that he would have to leave. He was one of the only friends I had ever had, and I found myself missing him as soon as he left. Maybe it was that he was the most handsome man I had ever met, or because he seemed like such a kind-hearted person, but I think I was developing feelings for him. As of yet, I didn't know if they were simply of friendship, or if they were something more intense.

I sighed. I wondered what Edward would do when it came time for my execution. He would have to watch me die. Would he intervene on my behalf, or would he just feel sadness after it was over with? These questions plagued me as I drifted off into an uneasy sleep. I couldn't wait for the time when Edward would come visit me again.

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